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Gold Falls Below $5,000 Following 14% Surge

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Editor’s note: Gold has surged on geopolitical uncertainty and sticky inflation, creating a broad bullish backdrop that has carried prices to fresh highs. A pause in the rally, like this week’s dip below US$5,000, can be a healthy consolidation rather than a sign of weakness. This editorial note frames the accompanying press release as a measured read on near-term dynamics, while acknowledging the longer-term drivers — such as central bank activity, ETF demand, and policy expectations — that keep gold well bid. For UAE investors and global traders, the current pullback may offer a cautious entry point into the next leg higher.

Key points

  • Gold dips below US$5,000 after a 14% year-to-date rally, seen as consolidation by eToro.
  • The move followed hawkish signals from Trump nominee Warsh; trading volumes thinner during Lunar New Year.
  • Longer-term drivers remain intact: geopolitical risk, sticky inflation, and a shifting US rate outlook.
  • Potential for another leg higher as Fed rate trajectory and cut expectations evolve; UAE investors see entry points in volatility.

Why this matters

This release underlines that near-term volatility does not erase gold’s fundamental support, with central bank demand and ETF inflows suggesting further upside as policy expectations evolve.

What to watch next

  • Monitor US inflation data for potential shifts in rate expectations.
  • Watch for new geopolitical developments that could reignite momentum.
  • Track ETF inflows and central bank activity that could sustain the rally.

Disclosure: The content below is a press release provided by the company/PR representative. It is published for informational purposes.

Press release: Gold Dips Below US$5,000 After 14% Rally

Abu Dhabi, UAE – February 19, 2026: Gold’s pullback below the US$5,000 level this week should not unsettle investors, according to eToro, which views the move as a natural consolidation within one of the strongest bull runs in recent years.

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Zavier Wong, Market Analyst at eToro

Gold’s dip below US$5,000 this week shouldn’t rattle investors. If anything, it’s a healthy pause in what remains one of the strongest bull runs in recent memory. — Zavier Wong, Market Analyst at eToro

The precious metal touched fresh record highs above US$5,000 earlier this month before retreating, following market reaction to former US President Donald Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve Chair. Investors interpreted the pick as hawkish, weighing on gold prices in the short term.

The move was further amplified by thinner trading volumes during the Lunar New Year period and US market holidays. However, Wong noted that much of the initial reaction has already been priced in, and the broader drivers behind gold’s rally remain firmly intact.

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“Gold has gained more than 14% since the start of the year, and the conditions that have driven that rally — including geopolitical uncertainty, sticky inflation concerns, and a shifting US rate outlook — haven’t gone anywhere.” — Wong added

For UAE investors, the fundamentals supporting gold remain unchanged. Central bank buying continues at a steady pace, ETF inflows are building, and institutional conviction behind the rally appears far from exhausted.

“When you layer in growing expectations that the US Federal Reserve could cut rates later this year, the case for holding gold only strengthens. That means another leg higher from here is not off the cards, and further record highs aren’t out of the question.” — Zavier Wong, Market Analyst at eToro

Wong emphasised that the current price action should be viewed as the market “catching its breath” rather than losing conviction, with gold continuing to trade near key technical support levels.

“The best way to look at this current consolidation is that the market is essentially catching its breath rather than losing conviction. Any fresh catalyst – whether a softer US inflation print or an escalation in geopolitical tensions – could quickly reignite momentum.” — he said.

For investors in the UAE already holding gold, this week’s volatility is likely to be short-term noise. For those still on the sidelines, Wong suggested it may offer a more attractive entry point than seen in recent weeks.

About eToro

eToro is the trading and investing platform that empowers you to invest, share and learn. We were founded in 2007 with the vision of a world where everyone can trade and invest in a simple and transparent way. Today we have 40 million registered users from 75 countries. We believe there is power in shared knowledge and that we can become more successful by investing together. So we’ve created a collaborative investment community designed to provide you with the tools you need to grow your knowledge and wealth. On eToro, you can hold a range of traditional and innovative assets and choose how you invest: trade directly, invest in a portfolio, or copy other investors. You can visit our media centre here for our latest news.

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ProShares Debuts Stablecoin-Ready ETF Compliant with GENIUS Act

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TLDR

  • ProShares launched the GENIUS Money Market ETF (IQMM), designed to support stablecoin issuers with liquid, short-term U.S. government securities.
  • The ETF is structured to comply with the GENIUS Act, which mandates stablecoin issuers to back their tokens with safe, liquid assets.
  • IQMM focuses on cash and Treasury bills with maturities of 93 days or less, ensuring liquidity for stablecoin issuers.
  • The GENIUS Act, signed into law in July, requires stablecoins to be backed 1:1 by assets that are easily convertible to cash.
  • The launch of the ETF comes as the stablecoin market approaches $300 billion, with projections for significant growth in the coming years.

ProShares introduced the GENIUS Money Market ETF (IQMM) on Thursday, a product designed for the growing stablecoin market. This fund aims to support stablecoin issuers by investing in highly liquid assets that meet the requirements of the GENIUS Act. The move comes as the stablecoin sector is projected to grow significantly in the coming years.

ProShares IQMM ETF Targets Stablecoin Issuers

The ProShares GENIUS Money Market ETF (IQMM) was launched to address a gap in the stablecoin market. Under the GENIUS Act, stablecoin issuers must back their tokens with assets that are liquid and low-risk, such as U.S. Treasury bills. IQMM is designed to invest solely in short-term, liquid U.S. government securities, meeting the law’s reserve criteria.

The law restricts eligible reserve assets to Treasury bills with maturities of no longer than 93 days. ProShares designed the fund to comply with these rules, ensuring that issuers can quickly access liquidity without selling longer-term bonds at a loss during periods of market volatility.

GENIUS Act Compliance Ensures Stability

The GENIUS Act, signed into law last July, is central to the structure of IQMM. The law aims to create a safer, more stable environment for the stablecoin market by requiring 1:1 backing with liquid, safe assets. ProShares’ ETF aligns with the law’s requirement, ensuring that stablecoins are supported by assets that can easily be converted to cash.

By focusing on cash and short-dated government securities, the fund provides issuers with the liquidity needed for daily redemptions. This ensures that stablecoin issuers can meet user demands without having to sell more volatile, longer-dated securities during times of stress in the financial markets.

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Stablecoin Market Growth Prompts Regulatory Action

The launch of the IQMM fund occurs as the stablecoin market approaches $300 billion in circulation, with Tether’s USDT and Circle’s USDC leading the sector. Policymakers are preparing for rapid expansion, with some forecasts suggesting stablecoin circulation could reach $2 trillion by 2028. Wall Street projections are more optimistic, with some firms predicting the market could grow as large as $4 trillion.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has indicated that stablecoins could become a significant part of the financial system in the coming years. His forecasts suggest the market could grow substantially by the end of the decade.

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U.S. Federal Reserve researchers sing praises of prediction markets

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U.S. Federal Reserve researchers sing praises of prediction markets

A research paper at the U.S. Federal Reserve praised the usefulness of prediction markets — specifically looking at Kalshi — in getting a real-time handle on economic policy.

“Kalshi’s forecasts for the federal funds rate and [the U.S. Consumer Price Index] provide statistically significant improvements over fed funds futures and professional forecasters, all while providing continuously updated full distributions rather than infrequent point estimates,” according to the paper published on Thursday.

And the markets, in which retail investors can buy contracts in virtually any yes-no question in such diverse fields as economics, politics and sports, are looking at topics on a live basis that other sources of information don’t.

Prediction markets “provide unique insights — particularly for variables like [gross domestic product] growth, core inflation, unemployment and payrolls, for which no other market-based distributions currently exist.”

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And in this study, Kalshi predictions “perfectly matched the realized federal funds rate by the day of each meeting since 2022, a feat not achieved by either surveys or futures.”

Part of the secret sauce that sets prediction markets apart as a useful tool may be the inclusion of retail participants, which makes them “distinct from institutionally dominated markets,” the paper noted.

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Bitcoin Miners Plan 30GW AI Capacity Amid Margin Pressure

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Bitcoin Miners Plan 30GW AI Capacity Amid Margin Pressure

Public Bitcoin miners are planning about 30 gigawatts of new power capacity aimed at artificial intelligence workloads, nearly three times the 11 GW they currently have online, as they race to offset shrinking mining margins and reposition for the next growth cycle.

The buildout, compiled by TheEnergyMag across 14 publicly traded Bitcoin (BTC) miners, underscores how aggressively the industry is pivoting away from traditional hashpower amid persistently weak hashprice conditions.

On paper, the planned expansion amounts to what TheEnergyMag described as “a small country’s worth of power infrastructure.” In reality, much of the 30 GW sits in development pipelines, interconnection queues or early-stage plans, rather than operational facilities.

Current and proposed power capacities of public Bitcoin miners. Source: TheEnergyMag

The widening gap suggests competition is shifting from ASIC efficiency to securing power, financing and delivering data centers on time.

“This is the megawatt arms race of the AI boom,” TheEnergyMag said, adding that monetization ultimately depends on whether AI demand remains strong enough to justify the scale of investment.

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Related: The real ‘supercycle’ isn’t crypto, it’s AI infrastructure: Analyst

AI pivot delivers early revenue gains for some miners

The shift toward artificial intelligence infrastructure reflects an increasingly hybrid strategy among established Bitcoin miners, with some companies already reporting meaningful revenue contributions from AI and high-performance computing (HPC) workloads.

One example is HIVE Digital, which recently posted record quarterly revenue driven in part by its AI and HPC business lines. The company reported fourth-quarter sales of $93.1 million, up 219% year on year, even as Bitcoin prices declined during the period.

Investors, too, are attuned to the shift. Earlier this week, Starboard Value went public with its suggestion to Riot Platforms management that they accelerate the miner’s expansion into HPC and AI data centers.

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The push to diversify comes as mining profits have taken a hit since the 2024 Bitcoin halving, which cut block rewards and squeezed margins across the industry.

Conditions have gotten even tougher since the fourth quarter, when heavy selling pressure sent Bitcoin tumbling from its record high above $126,000. Prices eventually stabilized in February, after briefly falling to below $60,000.

Despite these headwinds, US-based miners showed resilience at the start of the year, with output rebounding after a severe winter storm temporarily disrupted operations.

Source: Julien Moreno

Related: Paradigm reframes Bitcoin mining as grid asset, not energy drain